Steam Support

Trading and Market Restrictions

There are a few different reasons why you may be unable to trade or use the Community Market. The reason is typically shown when you try to initiate a trade or perform an action on the Community Market.

Important:

Steam Support cannot modify trading or Community Market restrictions, regardless of the circumstances under which your account became restricted.

Types of Restrictions

Trade or Market Hold

An item hold won't prevent your account from trading or using the Community Market, but it will delay items being transferred to other accounts if you aren't able to protect your account with a Steam Guard Mobile Authenticator.

Trade and market holds protect items if a user's account is compromised. Even if a hijacker manages to access your account, you can prevent them from stealing your items by canceling any transactions that are on hold.

Recently Cancelled An Accepted Trade

If you choose to cancel any of your accepted trades that are in a trade hold, your account will be restricted from trading for 7 days for your protection.

Limited User Accounts

Limited users are prevented from accessing several features on Steam. We've chosen to limit access to certain features as a means of protecting our users from those who abuse Steam for purposes such as spamming and phishing.

Newly Authorized Device

If you are logging onto Steam from a device that has not been previously authorized by Steam Guard (log in confirmed via email), you will not be able to trade or use the Community Market from this device for 7 days. Any other devices that have already been authorized for at least 7 days will still be able to trade and use the Community Market.

Actions such as clearing your web browser cookies, using a new web browser, reinstalling Steam, and reformatting your computer will make that device look new to Steam and will trigger this restriction.

Exceptions: If you have had a Steam Guard Mobile Authenticator on your account for at least 7 days, there will be no trading or Market restrictions for using new devices/computers. This is because you'll confirm trades and Market listings from the mobile app.

Steam Guard Not Enabled

We require Steam Guard (via email or mobile authenticator) to be enabled for 15 days to help protect your items and Steam Wallet funds from being misused by someone who may have illicitly obtained your password. If you have not had Steam Guard enabled for 15 days, you will be unable to trade or use the Community Market. Accounts that currently have Steam Guard disabled will be unable to trade and use the Community Market.

Steam Guard Only Recently Enabled

If you have recently enabled Steam Guard via email on your account, you will be unable to use the Community Market for the 15 days after Steam Guard was enabled. Removing Steam Guard or disabling and re-enabling Steam Guard will also trigger this restriction.

Recent Password Reset

If you forget your password and need to reset it (note: this is different than changing your password), you will be restricted from trading and the Community Market for 5 days. If your account has not had any activity for more than two months, these restrictions will apply for 30 days. We do this to help protect users who lose access to their email account.

You can change your password from the settings panel in the Steam Client. This restriction only applies to password resets, ex: done via https://help.steampowered.com or by Steam Support.

Mobile Authenticator Added

A Steam Guard Mobile Authenticator provides additional security for your account. Adding an authenticator does not immediately remove existing restrictions. Trades created within the first 7 days of adding the authenticator will still have up to a 15 day trade hold. This allows your items to still be protected and gives you time to recover your account if a malicious actor were to ever add an authenticator to your account.

If your account was already protected by Steam Guard via email, you will have no new restrictions from using trading or the Community Market. If your account was not protected by Steam Guard via email or mobile app, you will be restricted from using trading and the Community Market for 15 days because Steam Guard has been recently enabled.

Mobile Authenticator Removed

Removing a Steam Guard Mobile Authenticator reduces your account security. To help protect your items, you will be unable to trade or use the Community Market for 15 days. In the case your account was compromised, this cooldown gives you time to recover your account and reinstate your security without losing your items.

Newly Added Payment Method

Items that are purchased with trusted payment methods may or may not have a cooldown before they can be traded or used in the Community Market. This cooldown period varies and is game dependent. A payment method that has been verified using Steam's card ownership verification tool is considered trusted. Verify your credit card here and gain access to the Community Market. Verification amounts are sent to your bank in the currency that appears in your Steam store. If your bank converts the charges into your local currency, please contact them for the pre-converted amounts.

Unverified payment methods will be subject to a 3 day waiting period before purchases can be made on the Community Market.

No Purchase Older Than 7 Days

Your account must have a successful purchase older than 7 days, but not older than a year in order to access the Community Market. The purchase of wallet funds, games, DLCs and software meet this requirement. Activating a Steam Wallet Code or Gift Card on your account to add funds to your Steam Wallet also meet this requirement. Retail CD key activation and gift purchases do not satisfy this requirement.

Any purchase that is charged back on your account will reset this restriction. Only purchases after the most recent chargeback will be considered for purposes of this restriction.

Current Trade or Community Ban

You also may be unable to trade or use the market if your account has been banned from trading by Steam Support. Depending on the severity of the violation, you may receive a temporary or permanent trade ban.

VAC Ban

If a VAC Ban, cooldown or overwatch ban has been registered on your account, you will no longer have access to the CS:GO store, or be able to make trades for CS:GO items, and you will no longer receive item drops.